Chapter 1: Massacre

In a fantastical world where magic and battle aura intertwined, the night draped a castle in darkness, Duke Carter’s fortress standing like a colossal shadow.

Deep within the castle, in a laboratory, Angus was wholly immersed in a magical experiment.
As the illegitimate son of Duke Robert Carter, his position in the family was awkward, and only his obsession with magical research could make him forget his troubles.

The experimental table was adorned with various peculiar magical materials and tools, glimmering with mysterious light.

Meanwhile, on the streets, Eric, a commoner by birth, was running, seemingly eager to reach a place of revelry.

Eric was a genius who had cultivated both magic and battle aura to an exceptionally high level, yet he had no family to rely on.

His younger sister, Elena, had been missing for days.

Relying on his formidable strength and relentless investigation, all clues pointed to Angus’s laboratory.

Eric silently infiltrated the castle, evading layers of guards, and finally arrived at the laboratory’s door.

Inside, Angus was oblivious to the impending danger, fully focused on adjusting the proportions of a magical potion, muttering incantations under his breath.

Eric forcefully pushed open the door, his powerful battle aura erupting like a raging wind sweeping toward Angus.

With a smile, Eric looked at Angus and said calmly, “Angus, prepare to join my sister in death!”

Startled by the sudden intrusion, Angus nearly dropped the potion bottle in his hand.
“Who are you? How did you get in?” he stammered, trying to explain.

Eric didn’t bother listening.

In a single stride, he rushed forward, grabbed Angus by the collar, and hurled him against the wall.

Angus’s body slammed into the hard surface, producing a dull thud.

“No need for excuses! Just wait for your death!” Eric said excitedly.

Angus’s face turned pale, and he shook his head desperately.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Eric raised his foot and delivered a fierce kick to Angus’s abdomen.

Angus curled up in pain, letting out a miserable groan.

But Eric showed no mercy.

In an instant, bandages sprouted from his body, slithering like serpents toward Angus, slicing countless wounds across his skin.

From the wounds caused by the bandages, more bandages grew, burrowing inward, turning minor injuries into severe ones as blood flowed uncontrollably.

The bandages then wrapped around Angus’s neck, lifting him into the air.

Eric manipulated the bandages, tugging at Angus’s intestines, eliciting another agonized moan.

“Tell me, where is my sister’s body?” Eric demanded again.

“I really don’t—ah!” Angus screamed.

Eric’s face broke into a radiant, sun-like smile as he said excitedly, “Last chance.”

“Why do you have a grudge against me? All my experimental subjects come from the crematorium or dug up from graves. I’ve never killed anyone! Whoever killed your sister, go after them! Don’t take your revenge on me, a mere grave robber!” Angus explained frantically.

Eric didn’t respond, instead staring silently into Angus’s eyes.

Just as Angus thought he might be spared, the bandages bound his limbs, twisting slowly like wringing a towel, squeezing out his blood drop by drop.
Angus let out a tortured scream.

Moments later, bandages emerged from his mouth, tangled with his tongue; others protruded from his eye sockets, piercing his eyeballs like grapes; more spilled from his ears and nostrils.

Angus could feel nothing but pain, his body no longer whole.

From his throat, Angus continued to emit guttural sounds.

Eric let out a cold snort, clapped his hands together, and exerted immense pressure on Angus, as if to crush his body into a pulp.

Angus’s organs ruptured under the force, blood gushing from his mouth in torrents.

Angus’s pleas grew faint, his breath nearly gone.

Unsatisfied, Eric unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks, each blow infused with battle aura, reducing Angus to a bloody, unrecognizable mess.

“Elena, your brother has avenged you. Rest in peace!” Eric muttered, crushing Angus’s head with one hand.

‘Don’t provoke him.’

That was Angus’s final thought before death.

Only then did Eric begin searching the laboratory for traces of his sister.

At last, in a hidden corner, he found Elena, deceased, submerged in a glass tank filled with green liquid.

Eric shattered the tank and lifted his sister’s body out.

To cover up the evidence of killing Angus, he set up a magical array in the laboratory, triggering a massive explosion.

In an instant, the laboratory was engulfed in flames, the powerful blast destroying everything around it.

Holding his sister tightly, Eric fled the castle under the cover of the explosion.

After running at full speed for nearly five hours, Eric left the Carter family’s territory, reached the capital, and returned home.

Once home, Eric gently placed Elena on the bed, covering her with a soft blanket.

As he pondered whether to preserve her body by freezing it, he noticed her fingers twitch slightly.

Eric’s eyes widened, staring at his sister in disbelief.

“Elena, is it you? Are you still alive?”

However, the “Elena” before him was, in truth, Angus’s soul trapped in her body.

When she saw Eric’s concerned yet resolute gaze, an overwhelming fear surged within her.

Eric’s towering figure loomed like an insurmountable mountain, suffocating her.

Trembling, Angus’s voice quivered as she said, “Who are you? I don’t know anything.”
Her eyes darted away, unable to meet Eric’s gaze.

Eric eagerly grasped his “sister’s” hand and said, “Elena, it’s me, your brother Eric!”

Angus’s body jolted, as if Eric’s hand carried a scorching flame that could burn her.

Pretending fear and confusion, she said, “Brother? I don’t remember.”

Eric fell silent for a moment, then tightly held his sister’s hand.

“No matter what, it’s enough that you’re alive.”

Angus inwardly groaned, knowing she had to tread carefully with Eric while finding a way to contact her family.

She feared Eric would see through her disguise, terrified of what he might do.

Each time Eric looked at her, she felt his gaze could pierce her soul, leaving her nowhere to hide.

Eric sat by the bedside, quietly watching his “sister,” searching her face for familiar expressions.

Angus, too tense to breathe, felt her heart pound as if it might leap from her throat.

“Elena, rest well. I’ll always be by your side,” Eric said gently.

Angus nodded slightly, closing her eyes, her mind racing with thoughts of how to contact her family.